Materials

Aldoro's pegmatite intersections at Murchison look encouraging

Wed 10 Aug 22, 1:36pm (AEDT)
A drill rig in the Australian outback
Source: iStock

Key Points

  • Aldoro has hit multiple pegmatite intersections 50m and over in length at its Niobe lithium-rubidium project in Murchison, WA
  • Part of the Phase II drilling campaign, the results so far beat initial expectations on pegmatite availability at Niobe
  • Assay results from previous Niobe drill runs delivered in Q1 returned evidence of high-grade lithium mineralisation, along with rubidium

Aldoro Resources (ASX:ARN) continues to build confidence in its Niobe lithium project with over 250m worth of pegmatite intersections being hit in the company’s ongoing Phase II RC drill run. 

The Niobe project, 70km away from Mt. Magnet in WA, sits within a budding lithium district, with nextdoor acreage owned by Firetail Resources (ASX:FTL) prospective for pegmatite deposits. 

The project also sits alongside Krakatoa Resources’ (ASX:KTA) Dalgaranga Gold Project.

When does Phase II drilling finish? 

As part of Phase II drilling, 33 RC holes have been completed onsite by Aldoro. The program is less than halfway through, with a total of 68 holes planned for 4,260m of core equivalent samples. 

Five pegmatite prospects are being targeted in the campaign and so far all holes have intersected some level of pegmatite mineralisation. 

Pegmatites, it should be noted, do not guarantee the presence of lithium, but are one of the most common geological formations to host in-situ lithium mineralisation. 

Given previous promising assay data from earlier in the year, it’s clear why the company believes it is onto a good thing. 

That's the stuff: a photograph of rock chip samples taken from the Phase II RC run in drillhole NBC0087
That's the stuff: a photograph of rock chip samples taken from the Phase II RC run in drillhole NBC0087

Food for thought 

Investors should note the results announced today are not evidence of one consistent underground pegmatite system. The pegmatite levels are broken up by non-commercial ore as the drills go further down, however, this is not particularly unusual. 

The biggest tell, of course, will be the delivery of assay results back to the company, once the Phase II drill run concludes. 

Ongoing delays at assay laboratories are seeing many companies waiting up to months to find out what they’re sitting on, and it’s unclear when Aldoro will be in a position to conclude the full results of Phase II drilling. 

How is Aldoro doing this year? 

At the end of the June quarter, Aldoro held $1.8m in cash. It is likely the Phase II campaign will take up a significant portion of this budget. 

That figure came even after the company conducted a share placement in the quarter to raise $2.3m, standard practice for junior explorers. Depending on the cost of the entire Phase II drill run, the company may need to shake the tin again soon. 

The 2022 calendar year, rife with a number of undesirable macro conditions, has not been kind to Aldoro shareholders. On January 4, the company’s share price was 40c; in early June, it hit 13.5c. 

Today, however, Aldoro is back to 27c, showing a gradual rejuvenation of interest from the market. 

Should pending assays return further evidence of high-grade lithium, it is likely this enthusiasm will continue, though it’s worth noting the battery metals market is likely to become subdued in 2023, according to Goldman Sachs

Taking a surface look at Aldoro’s performance: 

  • One week returns up 28.57% 

  • One month returns up 63.64% 

  • Year to date (YTD) performance -34.94% 

  • One year returns -51.35% 

Aldoro has a market cap of $26.8m and is ranked 471 of 912 materials sector players.

Aldoro's three month charts show the share price shaking off its all-year low in early July and heading back up
Aldoro's three month charts show the share price shaking off its all-year low in early July and heading back up

 

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Written By

Jonathon Davidson

Finance Writer

Jonathon is a journalism graduate and avid market watcher with exposure to governance, NGO and mining environments. He was most recently hired as an oil and gas specialist for a trade publication.

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